Collapsible tent



Sept, 20, 1938.

Filed June 16} 193'? Fig. 3.

G. ERICKSON ET AL,

COLLAPSIBLB TENT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Snventor GUNNAR ERlcKsoN. TAGE BERGLUND. 4

I Gttorneg Patented Sept. 20, 1938 UNITED STATES COLLAPSIBLE TENT Gunnar Erickson and Tage Berglund, Omaha, Nebr.

Application June 16, 1937, Serial No. 148,478

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a collapsible tent, and principally to a tent frame consisting of parts which may be collapsed to occupy a limited I space for convenient transportation, and may be readily assembled and connected to provide a complete tent, preferably of rectangular form in plan. I

The invention includes telescoping tubes for tent-posts and pivotally connected, metallic strips of inverted U-shape in cross-section for the horizontal parts of the frame, together with pivotally mounted braces and ground-engaging members, all of which provides a tent-frame of firm construction adapted to resist wind storms. The invention also includes means for detachably securing netting or other flexible screen material to the posts for the sides of the tent, together with a canvas cover which may be readily applied or removed.

It is an object to provide a tent for use of tourists and excursionists which may be carried as a part of the luggage, and of such construction 7 that it may be conveniently arranged in operative position. While the' parts have been arranged for convenient transportation, the tent is useful as a stationary permanent structure.

The invention consists of the new and useful features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as described herein and claimed, and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it being understood that changes may be made in form, size, proportions and minor details, said changes being within the scope of the invention as claimed.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a perspective View showing the collapsible frame.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of the tent. Fig. 3 is a detail view showing a part of a corner post of the tent frame.

The remaining figures of the drawings are detail views showing the construction of the collapsible tent frame.

Fig. 4 is a side View of one of the horizontal, collapsible frame-members shown in extended position for one of the sides of a rectangular tent, and Fig. 5 is a plan view of the same.

Fig. 6 is a side view of the cross-frame member shown in extended position, and Fig. '7 is a plan view of the same.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of one of the horizontal frame-members shown in extended position for the end of a tent, and Fig. 9 is a view of the same in longitudinal section.

Fig. 10 is a view in transverse section through any one of the horizontal frame-strips showing the preferred U-shaped form therefor.

Fig. 11 is a view in longitudinal section of one of the corner posts, and Fig. 12 is a detail view on an enlarged scale relating to Fig. 11 to show a 5 spring latch and mountings for a pair of brace rods, and Fig. 13 is an enlarged View relating to Figs. 4, 5, 8 and 9, showing a part of a horizontal frame member provided with a slide latch arranged for securing or releasing the hook of a brace-rod.

Referring now to the drawings for a more specific description, we provide a frame I4, preferably of rectangular form in plan and elevation,

for supporting a canvas cover l5 and side Walls 15 IS.

The frame consists, in part, of corner posts ll, each consisting of a lower tubular section 18 and an upper tubular section I9 adapted to be slidably disposed in the lower section and provided at its upper end with an anchor-pin 20.

I The lower end of each post is provided with a detachable ground-engaging shoe or support 2i.

Means are provided for controlling the slidable movements of each upper pipe-section within the lower section, consisting of a locking-pin 22, of spring 23, carried by the lower section l8 of a post normally engaging in an aperture 24 of the section l9. By use of a thumb-piece 25 the spring may be moved to cause release of the pin from the aperture 24 to permit the section Hi to slide inwardly of the section l8 for occupying a limited space for convenience when the tent is packed. for transportation. For use of the corner posts in supporting other parts, the tubular sections l9 may be disposed with their apertures 24 in register with locking-pins 22, and any rotary or longitudinal movements of the sections 1 8 and l 9 relative to each other will be prevented by the pins 22 while engaging in said apertures 24.

Numerals 26 indicate a pair of opposed, horizontal frame-members each provided with apertures 21 at its ends for receiving the anchor-pins 20 of two adjacently disposed posts.

Each frame-member 26 preferably consists of a central frame-strip a and pair of end-strips I) connected to the central strips by use of pivots x.

Numerals 28 indicate a pair of opposed, horizontal frame-members for the ends of the tent, each consisting of a pair of frame-strips 7) connected relative to each other by a pivot 02', and each frame-strip b is provided with a terminal aperture 21 for receiving an anchor-pin 20 of two corner posts.

Numeral 29 indicates a cross-frame member,

- the cover.

and when mounted in operative position its midproximately parallel with the apertured part of dle part will project above other parts of the tent so that the canvas cover I5 will be a protection against rain, the frame-strips 2)" being pivoted for rocking movements at and each strip b" being provided with a hook 30. When the parts are assembled the hooks 30 will engage in the apertures 3i which are provided, centrally in the middle frame strips a of frame-members 26, shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings.

It will be noted that the several frame-strips for the horizontal frame-members 26 and 29 are pivotally connected in such a manner that they will sustain a heavy load, and that their form of inverted U-shape in cross-section provide channels 32 adapted to receive the pivotally attached frame-strips when the latter have been swung to collapsed position.

The cover l5 may be secured to the frame by any suitable means, the preferred means employed in the present instance being eyelets 33 (Fig. 2) provided for said covers at the corners thereof. When the cover is placed on the frame th eyelets will receive the anchor-pins 20. Each anchor-pin is provided with a pivotally mounted locking-bar 0 adapted to be disposed at rightangles to the pin 26 for preventing release of the cover, and adapted to be swung to a position parallel with said pin 20 to permit removal of By use of this simple arrangement of parts the cover l5 may be readily secured to the corner posts orremoved therefrom as required:

The horizontal frame-members 26 and 28 are prevented from undue vibration or swinging movements relative to the corner posts by means of brace-rods (i l carried by the lower tubular parts l8 of the corner posts. As best shown in Fig. 12, one of the ends of these brace-rods is pivoted at 35 to collars 36, the latter being secured to the tubular parts N3 of theposts, at the upper ends thereof, and as shown in Fig, 13, the opposite end of each brace-rod is provided with a book 37 which engages in an aperture 393 of a bracket 39, each bracket 39 being approximately of V-shape having a part projecting downwardly toward a post and welded or otherwise secured to a frame-strip, in the channel thereof, and in operation, after a brace-rod has beendisposed with its hook engaging in an aperture 38 a slotted sleeve All which is carried by the bracket is moved and will engage that end-portion of the bracerod near its hook to lock said brace-rod in operative position, said end-portion being disposed apthe bracket.

As thus described the brace-rods may have swinging movements in arcs approximately of 90 degrees in vertical planes below the horizontal frame-members 26 and 28 and will not be obtrusive and will not interfere in the use of interior parts of the tent.

The netting l6 for the sides and ends of the tent, preferably has a width equal to the height of the tent and has a length sufficient to cover the sides and ends thereof. It is provided at its upper edge with a cord 4!, and its lower edge is provided with a cord 42, and when applying the netting to the frame it may be drawn to a taut condition, and the upper edge may be secured to the horizontal frame-members by any suitable means, the means employed in the present instance for this purpose being the anchor-pins 20 which are engaged by the cord 4|.

We claim as our invention:

1. ma collapsible tent of rectangular form, a plurality of corner posts each consisting of a lower ground engaging tubular section, an upper tubular section slidably mounted in the first named section, horizontal collapsible framemembers of arcuate form in cross-section each provided in its channel with V-shaped apertured brackets and detachably secured at its ends to the upper tubular sections of a pair of relatively adjacent posts to form supports for a tent cover, and a pair of brace-rods each pivotally mounted on one of said lower tubular sections and having a terminal hook adapted to engage in the aperture of the nearest of said brackets, and a slotted sleeve slidable on said bracket for engaging and securing a brace-rod thereon.

2. In a collapsible tent, upright corner posts, horizontal, collapsible frame-members of arcuate form in cross-section each provided near its ends in its channel with brackets each having a rectilinear apertured part inclined downwardly toward a corner post, means for detachably securing each frame-member to a pair of relatively adjacent posts, a pair of brace-rods carried by each post and having an end-portion provided with a hook and adapted to be disposed with said endportion parallel with the inclined part of a bracket, its hook engaging in the aperture thereof. and a slotted sleeve slidably mounted on each said apertured part of a bracket for engaging the end-portion of a brace-rod.

' GUNNAR ERICKSON.

TAGE BERGLUND. 

